Monster Hunter: Dragon Slayer
by ryu kazerei
Summary: In Minegarde, hunters from around the world gather to test their strength against the myriad of beasts roaming the land. When never before seen monsters start killing unsuspecting hunters, it's up to a small group of powerful hunters to return the once natural order and unravel an ancient mystery, bigger than they could ever imagine.
1. The Blade Shall Fall

So here it is, the first chapter of the first FanFic I've ever written. I'm not sure how I feel about it, I started writing it on a whim, and I have absolutely no idea where the story is going to go from here lol. I was listening to One Ok Rock while writing this, I'd play 'Kanze Kankaku Dreamer' to get the full effect xD

A quick note, all thoughts will be in italics, standard procedure for FanFics.

With that being said, enjoy Dragon Slayer!

* * *

A piercing roar ripped through the desert. The type of roar that makes the lives of weak hunters flash before their very eyes, weakens the grip on their weapons and fills them with a degredating feeling. This was the roar of the horned dragon, which sends all novice hunters to despair. For this hunter though, it only sent a smirk to his lips.

He cracks his neck, unsheathes his Dual Swords and charges in without a second thought; onward to slay his one-hundreth Diablos.

The monster notices him immediately, turns towards him and begins to taunt the newcomer threatening his area. The hunter is unshaken and continues to charge forward, waiting for the Diablos to do the same. The monster Kicks both of its' feet against the dirt, rears back and charges to meet the hunter with all its' might.

_Five seconds 'til impact..._

The hunter picks up his pace and lowers his upper-body to decrease wind resistence and clear his vision, knowing in a split-second everything can go wrong.

_Four seconds_...

He closes his eyes for an instant and focuses all his energy. When his eyes open again, they are blood-red and his body is now surrounded by a swirling red aura.

_Three seconds_...

His brow tightens, along with the grip on his swords as he increases his pace yet again.

_Two seconds_...

The white of the Diablos' eyes are now visible to the hunter, he is unthreatened by the obvious look of malice the monster is giving him.

_One second_...

With speed no ordinary human could ever manage to produce, the hunter stabs one of his swords into the left horn of the monster. Kicking off the ground with his feet, he uses his momentum to flip right over the charging monster, taking a good portion of its' horn off in the process. The horn falls to the ground with an audible thud.

_I've got to finish this before the next attack_. The Diablos' charge ends, sliding about 30 feet to cease his momentum. The hunter lands and quickly closes the gap between himself and the beast. The Diablos prepares to swing its' tail behind him to thwart any sneak attacks the hunter may attempt, but it's already too late.

"Demon Dance!" The two words are spoken and the hunter begins a barrage of swings on the monster's stomach. Left, right, left, right; the hunter alternates between blades until bringing them both down simultaneously for the final blow.

Rolling out from underneath the monster, completely covered in sweat and blood, he watches as the mighty dragon in front of him falls to the rough ground of the Desert. He wipes the sweat from his brow and walks over to the monster's head.

"Now to take what I came here for." He begins to carve off the monster's second horn when he witnesses black smoke pour from its' nostrils.

"Oh shi-!" The Diablos quickly and powerfully flicks its' head into the air, its' remaining horn missing the hunter's chest by mere inches. The hunter jumps back a good five feet and prepares to react to the monster's next attack.

_This Blos is pissed about its' missing horn, this is gonna get bad real quick if I'm not careful._ He widens his stance and bends his knees, blades held out and waiting to react to the monster's inevitable charge. His brow tightens as he sees the monster growl and begin to charge.

The hunter quickly rolls to the right, knowing the Diablos will not be able to alter its' course. He lands on one knee and quickly throws one of his blades into the monster's leg as it charges past. The Diablos screams in pain and falls to the ground. The hunter jumps into the air with a loud scream and lands with his remaining blade deeply imbedded into the monster's neck. He twists once and he feels the monster's movement come to a complete halt, its' breathing ending a moment later.

He rips his blade out of the monster's neck, walks over to retrieve his other sword and prepares once again to cut off the monster's remaining horn. With a single swipe of his sword the horn is off and the hunt is officially over.

Dropping his blades to the ground, the hunter removes his Helm and Mail, then finally opens a cool drink to fight the scolding desert heat. His black hair is a mess, his dark green eyes hidden from sight as he closes them and sighs. His sweat-covered face is contorted into a scowl as he starts to rub his back, the X-shaped scar running its' entire length beginning to hurt. He finishes the drink in a single gulp, feeling its' cooling effects kick in almost immediately.

Walking over to his dual swords, he picks them up and flicks off the blood from the blades. He retheathes them, picks up the pieces of his armor and the set of Diablos horns from the ground then begins his treck back to his village. He hears the distant sound of carnivores beginning to devour the slain Diablos.

"Another one bites the dust." He exclaims out loud to no one. He can see the Rhenoplos in the area staring tentatively at him, having had just witnessed the hunter slay a Diablos single-handedly. He pays them no mind and continues walking.

* * *

"So he's the one, huh?" The female asks the male crouched down on one knee beside her. Both atop a tall cliff overlooking the departing hunter. Both watching him walk out of the desert, the male's smile growing.

"Yes. That is Lightning Shinobu, the legendary Dragon Slayer. One of the Forbidden Hunters, whose power is revered worlwide." The man explains, very pleased after watching the hunter's fight with the Diablos.

"I can see why, he single-handedly took out a Diablos faster than most full teams can manage." The woman states as she turns around and begins to walk away.

"You don't know the half of it, his true power has yet to be revealed. We only know of the many rumors surrounding him." Says the male as he stands to follow his female companion.

"He's just the person we need to slay that monster." The woman stops walking at those words, her head turning to look the male in the eyes.

"Shou, you really think he has the ability to slay the Dokuryuu?" She asks, not entirely certain what her comrade says is true.

"I don't think Miyuki, I know." Shou states matter of factly, "He may very well be the only hunter in the world strong enough to slay it." He continues walking past Miyuki, who takes one last glance at the hunter before turning around to follow.

"He won't be able to do it alone." And with that, they too begin to walk out of the desert.

* * *

So that's it, please R&R if you liked it (or hated it, idc xD) This will be a multi-chapter story with many arcs if I can find the inpiration. Stay Tuned!

I'm mostly gonna be using japanese names in this story, I'll supply their meaning at the end of every chapter.

Shinobu - boy's name meaning 'endurance'.  
Miyuki - girl's name meaning 'silent snow, beautiful happiness'.  
Shou - boy's name meaning 'soar, fly'.  
Dokuryuu - translates to 'poison dragon'. More about that later on ;)


	2. Perpetual Motion

So I realize I'm updating this pretty fast, there's not really a reason for that. I syarted thinking about where I wanted this story to lead and some interesting ideas came to mind. This chapter points towards the actual story I'm going for with this Fic. This chapter is all dialogue so listen to some slow music ;)

* * *

After traveling almost half a day, Shinobu is finally able to see Yakumo Village. He hasn't been stationed there for very long, and he probably won't be there much longer. He can't help but think back to his mother's final words. _Never stop moving. _He's certainly done just that, constantly traveling from area to area to hunt all different kinds of monsters. Nonetheless, even amongst the endless chaos that is his life, one thing never changes.

_The need to fight..._

It's only in the heat of battle that the world seems to make perfect sense to him. Everyone says he attracts trouble, and maybe subconsciously he does. He just can't deny his need for power, the feeling of standing on the edge of madness too stimulating to deny. Hunting just comes too easily to him, standing face to face with death on a regular basis doesn't scare him in the least. He doesn't have to think, he doesn't even have to try, he just has to let his experience and instinct lead him to wherever it is he needs to be.

Even if the sky was falling, he would charge forward without a seconds hesitation. The thought of losing never enters his mind, ever.

Shinobu rubs his forehead, hoping to quell the growing headache he can feel coming on when a familiar voice pulls him out of his thoughts. He hadn't even noticed he had made it to the village.

"Juro..." Shinobu could instantly feel his headache getting more pronounced, giving an audible groan as he approached his partner. It's not that he disliked the man, he just didn't wanna deal with him as soon as he returned to the village.

"Man, you're back sooner than usual. The hunt didn't go well-" Juro asks, he couldn't help but notice most of Shinobu's Silver Sol armor in his left hand. Blue eyes then noticed the Diablos horns under his left arm, making the corner of his mouth turn upward. "-Or maybe it went great." He finishes with a laugh, offering a hand to help carry Shinobu's equipment.

"I already walked half the goddamn day carrying all of this, another 30 feet isn't gonna kill me." Shinobu states as he walks right past his friend without looking at him. "And if you must know, the hunt went fine."

"What's with the Blos horns though, I thought you went out to hunt a Sand Bari?" Juro asks as he starts walking to follow Shinobu, staring quizzically at the pair of horns. "That's number one-hundred, right? One more title for your hunter card." He states with a grin, catching up to Shinobu to pat him on the back.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Don't need to make a big deal about it. I was tracking the damn cat when I felt a Blos moving through the sand beneath me. Decided to ditch the cat and go have some real fun." Shinobu quickly brushed off Juro's hand with his free one, picking up pace to get to his barracks faster. Apparently Juro wasn't done talking.

"One hundred Blos and yet not one of them were captured, or even carved for that matter. I don't know whether that's impressive or stupid." This made Shinobu turn his head to give his friend an annoyed glance, making Juro break out laughing. Shinobu only shakes his head at this.

"Tch, capturing a monster takes all the fun out of it. Besides, the monsters usually aren't alive long enough for me to capture them." He states matter of factly. "And in case you didn't notice, I carved the horns from every single Blos I killed." He added, shifting his armor to his free hand to hold up the Blos horns for good measure. Juro only laughed again.

"That's just a trophy and you know it, all the useful materials are in the body and tail. I suppose the legendary Dragon Slayer can't be bothered with regular monster parts." This makes Shinobu look at him yet again, only with a pronounced smirk on his face.

"Haha, you're damn straight I can't. You know the kind of monsters I strive for Juro." Facing forward again, Shinobu is relieved to see their barracks just up ahead.

"Of course man, Elders and nothing else." Juro stops Shinobu before he can open the door to their barracks, placing a strong grip on his shoulder to turn him around. "Speaking of Elders, there's a rumor going around of a new dragon spotted out in the Wasteland." With that he lets go of Shinobu's shoulder, walks past him to open the door to the barracks. "Apparently, it's the Dokuryuu." He turns his head slightly to catch Shinobu's reaction and chuckles when he sees his brow furrowing. He turns the door handle and walks inside.

* * *

"So, who do you think that person walking with Shinobu is?" Miyuki asks the male sitting beside her. They were both enjoying their dinner when she happened to notice the hunter walking by with an unidentified individual. He was slightly taller than Shinobu with short white hair, the majority of it brushed to the side. He was wearing Nargacuga armor with a Long Sword she didn't recognize strapped to his back. She tried to listen in on their conversation but the streets of the village were particularly busy that night, making any snooping impossible.

"A friend I imagine." Says Shou, clearly uninterested in finding out who the person was. Miyuki only rolls her eyes at him and continues watching the two walking down the street. She sees Shinobu's supposed friend move to the side to avoid bumping into a man walking the opposite direction and notices the huge scar on Shinobu's back.

"That scar_..._" She taps Shou's arm to get his attention and points in Shinobu's direction when he looks up at her. Shou turns around and immediately sees what Miyuki is referring to.

"Hmm, so that rumor is true after all. Interesting." He quickly forgets about his food and takes out his notepad to record the new piece of information.

"What rumor? He's a seasoned hunter, having scars is pretty common for someone like him." She was certain of her reasoning, though she couldn't think of any monsters that would leave an X-shaped scar. Shou finishes writing, places his notepad down on the table and crossed arms.

"True, but the monster that apparently gave him that wound is anything but common. According to the rumors, that scar was given to him by the Megatreon. The same monster that apparently slaughtered his entire family when he was a child." Miyuki's eyes widen considerably after hearing this, she places a hand over mouth to hide her gasp.

"Oh my god! You mean that old story, that was Shinobu?" Suddenly the entire legend surrounding the man became perfectly clear. "That's why he never stops traveling, he's searching for the Megatreon. He wants revenge." Shou leans foward in his seat and gives Miyuki a meaningful look before shaking his head.

"It's so much more than that, Miyuki. If what people say is true, that monster took everything he knew, everything he loved from him and there was absolutely nothing he could do to stop it." Miyuki breaks eye contact with Shou to look back at Shinobu, noticing how the smile on his face didn't manage to reach his eyes.

"He's trying to relinquish the feeling of uselessness he felt that night. For Shinobu, slaying the Megatreon is the same as overcoming his biggest fear. He isn't seeking revenge, he's seeking salvation."

* * *

"These rumors are starting to piss me off, there seems to be a new sighting every week and they always end up being bullshit." Shinobu states annoyingly as he walks inside his barracks, dropping his armor and the Diablos horns to the floor without a care. He quickly heads to his kitchen and takes a seat at the table, removing his Ebony Wings from his back and placing them down on top of it. He was about to begin maintenance on the weapons when Juro started to elaborate on his comment.

"That's the thing, it isn't a simple rumor this time." He enters the kitchen and immediately opens the freezer, he starts reaching for a bottle of Goldenfish Brew from within the ice. Once he manages to grab one, he sits across from Shinobu at the table and continues his explanation. "This time there's a victim. A group of hunters were tracking a Khezu when they came across a body." Pausing to take out the bottle's cork with his teeth, we takes a big swig of the brew and swallows before looking Shinobu straight in the eye. "They found the body of a Low Rank hunter with four deep, jagged claw wounds in his chest." He stops again to take another swig of his drink.

Shinobu only shrugs his shoulders, takes his pouch off of his belt and places it on the table. He takes out a whetstone and begins to sharpen the main blade of his right Ebony Wing. "Nothing unusual about that, rookies get killed everyday. Show me a dead High Rank hunter and I'll get interested." He begins sharpening the smaller blades when Juro elaborates further.

"Sure, a dead rookie is nothing new. A dead rookie with miasma pouring out of his wounds however is highly peculiar." At that Shinobu stops sharpening his sword and drops it on the table. He then places his elbows on the table and rests his head on his hands, his frown slowly turning into a smirk.

"I know that look, and the answer is no." Juro states before his friends can propose another one of his reckless ideas. Shinobu rolls his eyes at this.

"I was gonna suggest we go check out this body, the medical facility isn't far from here after all." Shinobu stands from the table, picking up his pouch as he walks past. "I'm gonna go shower real quick, you should change out of your armor. We're checking out that body whether you like it or not." Shinobu enters the bathroom and slams the door shut behind him without waiting for an answer. Juro just sighs and gets up from the table to head to his room and change. On his way he stops outside the bathroom door to say one last thing.

"If the rumors are true, we'll be one step closer to figuring out why all these new dragons are suddenly showing up. You know what that means." With that he heads into his room, not sure if Shinobu even heard him or not. Shinobu did however, and he was currently scowling harder than he had all day.

_It means we're one step closer to the Megatreon._ He quickly stripped off the remaining pieces of his armor and stepped into the scolding hot downpour of water. He tried to ignore the searing pain from the scar in his back, the pain that has returned regurlarly ever since that night sixteen years ago.

_Never stop moving..._

* * *

With this we officially enter the first arc of the story, the Dokuryuu arc. And in case you're wondering, the Megatreon is related to Alatreon. It's a rare species of Alatreon, that's all you need to know for now.

Silver Sol armor is made from Silver Los materials, has the earplugs and speed sharpening skills. Nargacuga armor is made from Nargacuga parts obviously, and has the constitution and evade distance up skills. Ebony Wings are Shinobu's main duals (mine as well), they're made from nargacuga parts and are very powerful. Juro's LS will be revealed later, it's going to be original.

Juro - Boys name meaning 'long life'. I named the character that because I first thought of ironically killing him this chapter, but I scrapped that idea and kept the name.

Anyway, R&R and stay tuned for the next chapter :)


	3. Signs We Can't Ignore

Here's chapter 3, another speedy update xD I think inspiration will not be a problem for awhile. This is a pretty long chapter, a lot os revealed in this chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

"So, what's the plan?" Juro asks Shinobu once he exits the bathroom, himself having just changed. Concluding that it wasn't smart to leave completely unequipped, he decides on a light chainmail armor to wear. _Never know when a monster will appear_. Shinobu looks up as he finishes drying his hair, raising a curious brow at Juro's question.

"We're going to inspect the body and see what information we can gather from it. We'll head over to the Wasteland tomorrow, maybe we can find some clues to point us in the right direction. Footprints, blood, scales-" He tosses his wet towel to the hamper in the corner. "- And if we're really lucky, we'll come across some remnants of this alleged miasma." He finishes, leaving Juro alone as he enters his room to change.

"Well, it's a hassle but at least we're doing some proper investigating. Have you tried sensing the dragon's location?" Juro shouts towards his partner's bedroom door. He gets no reply for a minute until Shinobu exits his room, donned in his Earth Shinobi armor. His recently polished Ebony Wings strapped to his back. Shinobu secures his pouch to the back of his belt and replies to Juro's question.

"I tried while I was in the shower, a few times actually. It seems our hypothesis is correct, my ability to sense dragons only extends to elementals. An ailment based dragon like the Dokuryuu is out of my reach." He concludes, fastening his black guards to both his arms. "Anyway, we should get moving. Go get your sword and meet me outside." With that, he walks over to the door and opens it, letting the cool night breeze enter the barracks.

"Ah, be right there." Juro sits up from his chair and walks to the far-side of the room, into his bedroom and picks up his Black sheathed katana off of its' stand. He quickly fastens the strap to the left side of his belt and leaves the room, then joins his partner outside in the busy street.

* * *

"So, what's the plan?" Miyuki asks her comrade as she enters the main room of their lodging, hoping Shou's plan didn't mean going back out that night. Heading over to the kitchen for a light snack, she couldn't stop the growl that left her throat as she caught his reply.

"We're going out to trail him soon." He said in a bemused tone, ignoring Miyuki's protesting words as he continued. "I'm certain Shinobu is going to be investigating that body found in the Wasteland earlier in the week. If it involves a possible Elder Dragon, Shinobu is most likely interested." He has finished reviewing all of his notes on the hunter and is eager to find out more about his connection to the Megatreon. He had a feeling he was close to figuring out the true goal of the Forbidden Hunter guild. He just can't help but think the guild and the Megatreon are somehow connected. "If Shinobu decides to hunt the Dokuryuu on his own, we can continue quietly observing him for now."

_Perhaps, the Megatreon is their goal. It would explain why Shinobu was enlisted at such an early age. But what's even more intriguing are all of these reported sightings of strange occurrences happening during Shinobu's hunts. Red eyes, scaled skin; one person even claimed to have heard him roar like a Wyvern. _Shou begins rummaging through his notes to find the strangest report amongst the bunch, the one that made him want to investigate the legendary Dragon Slayer in the first place.

_"...Everything happened so fast, I couldn't believe what I was seeing! The man was just fighting a regular Rathalos when suddenly, in the middle of the fight, the entire atmosphere changed! When Shinobu attacked the Los after that, I saw the remnants of the dragon element in every hit. I'm certain Ebony Wings have no innate element, how in the world is that even possible!?" _Closing his notebook and resting it on the table, Shou leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms across his chest. Eyes glued to the wall across from him.

_The ability to awaken the dormant attributes of weapons...the ability to control elements. Something only known to be possible by the Wyverns, has apparently been replicated by that man..._

_Just what are you Shinobu?_

He is pulled out of his thoughts when Miyuki walks over to stand in front of his view, still looking aggravated about having to go out again. The look was accentuated by her harsh tone.

"Are you ready to go, or do you plan on staring at the wall all night with that stupid look on your face?" She only receives a nod in reply, causing her to roll her eyes as she turns around to grab her jacket off of the chair behind her. Not bothering to look back at Shou who has still yet to move from his spot, she marches over to the lodge's entrance and throws the door open roughly. "Move your ass, idiot!" She shouts behind her as she walks outside, smirking as she hears the door shut and locked behind her less than five seconds later. The sound of Shou's familiar footsteps coming next.

* * *

"So, what have you discovered so far Doctor?" Shinobu asks the short, red-haired woman as they enter the the room holding the latest dead hunter. She was apprehensive to allow Shinobu and Juro access at first, a quick flash of their Forbidden Hunter seals immediately changing her mind.

"Well, in short, the unknown substance is highly degenerative and even more highly concentrated. Based on the positioning and the depth of the wounds, it's safe to say that the substance is a very potent poison, as well as the likely cause of death. But what's really interesting is the fact that the poison seems to be acting more like a virus, attacking the blood cells in the body and it would appear, completely removing and replacing them. Watch this." Taking out a small scalpel, she grabs the right arm of the corpse and cuts deeply into his wrist. To the two hunter's surprise, more miasma immediately started seeping out of the wound.

"This is highly unusual for a poison, I've never in my entire career witnessed such a phenomenon." She states, not bothering to try closing the wound, she drops the scalpel to the side table and turns back to the hunters. "What do you think this means?" Both were so engrossed in what they just witnessed, they almost didn't hear her. She couldn't help but notice the look of excitement in both of their eyes.

"It means that this isn't a rumor, not at all. The Dokuryuu is real. It's safe to go near the body right? Does the miasma affect others nearby?" Shinobu asks as he takes a few steps forward, next to the body.

"So far none of the staff have been affected, the hunter's that brought in the body are also fine. The miasma only seems to aff-" The doctor's answer is cut off by a deafening scream, Shinobu dropping to his knees from the pain that suddenly formed in his back, steadily growing. He couldn't think, he couldn't even breathe, just barely able to hear the two other occupants of the room scrambling to help him.

"Shinobu! Shinobu, Whats going on? Is your scar hurting again?!" Juro is quickly knelt down behind him, lifting up the back of his suit to inspect the scar on his back. What he saw however, made his breathe hitch in his throat and the colour drain immediately from his face.

"What is happening to him? Has this happened be-" The doctor ate her words when she noticed what Juro was staring at. On the four spots between the lines of his scar, the skin was actually shining. One red, one yellow, one blue and the last purple. The scar itself was beginning to open, sending trickles of blood down his back. The doctor quickly turned around to grab some bandages and surgical tape, telling Juro to lay him down on his stomach at once.

The doctor's words snapped Juro out of his shock, quickly doing as she said. Sticking a finger to the pulse on Shinobu's neck, he was once shocked to find his heart beating very erratically. The doctor knelt down beside him with the bandages and began spreading antiseptic on the opened scar. Shinobu's screaming seemed to be dying down, Juro attempted to call out to him once more.

"Shinobu, talk to me man! Are you conscious or not?" He received no answer, but he wasn't really surprised about that. He turned back to the doctor, having had just finished bandaging Shinobu's back.

"We need to turn him on his back so I can check his vitals, I have no idea what's happening so there isn't much I can do to help but at the very least, I can keep him alive along enough to get through this." She said, standing up to grab a pillow for Shinobu's head. Juro slid his left arm under Shinobu's chest, lifting his torso off the ground to turn his body over with his right arm. He carefully places him back down, careful not to agitate his back and holds up his head for the doctor to slide the pillow underneath.

The doctor grabs Shinobu's wrist to feel his pulse, eyes widening in horror once she feels his heart beat. Setting his arm down, she shifts over to his head to check his eyes. She opens one eyelid, what she finds making her gasp. "Hi-his Sclera are purple!" This shocks Juro considerably, have only ever witnessed his eyes turn red.

"Jesus Christ, there's always something weird happening with this guy!" Juro yells, exasperated as he leans forward to look into his partner's eye. "Why is his eye darting around like that?" He asks the doctor, hoping the shock of the situation hasn't lessened her reasoning.

"That's called Rapid Eye Movement, or REM sleep. He's dreaming." She let's her arm drop to the ground, Shinobu's eyelid closing once again. "I could forcefully wake him up, but the shock of waking may be too much for him to handle right now. We're just gonna have to wait it out, pick him up so we can bring him to one of the infirmary. If close contact with the miasma caused this, creating distance from it may help him wake up sooner." Juro quickly follows her orders, sliding his arms under Shinobu's back and legs to pick him up.

_Whatever you're dreaming about Shinobu, it better be worth the heart attack you just gave me._

* * *

Shinobu didn't know what was happening to him. One second he was on his knees in severe pain at the hospital room, the next he was on what felt like a mountain top, purple fog surrounding him. He begins to walk forward, noticing after a moment that he is moving downhill. There were no trees, no cliffs or crevices; just hard, flat land as he continued walking. He began to wonder if he was even moving when he came across what looked like the entrance of a cave. Not seeing any other options, he enters the dark cave cautiously.

He has walked at least a mile without hearing any sounds or seeing anything but darkness when he approaches a fork in the cave. Looking down the right pathway carefully, Shinobu sees nothing but more darkness in that direction. Once he peers down the left pathway however, his eyes catch what appears to be moonlight creeping down in to the cave.

_There must be a pit down this path, maybe I can climb out of it. _He begins down the path, the light at the end of the tunnel becoming brighter as he moves closer to it. He suspects the end to be another 50 feet or so when he hears the unmistakable sound of a sleeping dragon. He reaches to his back for his Dual Swords, shocked to find his hands grabbing nothing but air.

_This just has to be a dream, there is no way in hell I would be without a weapon at a time like this._ Deciding what happens to him probably won't matter, he immediately breaks out into a run to find the source of the noise. Passing through the end of the tunnel, bright moonlight hits him in the face, momentarily blinding him. He puts his arm up to his face to shade his eyes from the light and slowly, the shape of a dragon starts to form in front of him as his eyes adjust to the light.

The dragon wasn't particularly big, about the size of the average Alatreon but it's body type was unlike any other he'd seen before. Coming out of the monsters back we're four wide wings, each a distinct toxic-green colour with dark, swirling patterns on the skin. It's entire body was covered in thick, black hide. It's back and neck appeared to have some kind of elongated spikes covering them, the tips of the spikes bearing a deep purple colour. Adjacent to its' wings were four legs, with five purple claws on each paw. On top of the dragon's head we're two long, green horns. Both at least 2 feet in length.

_This...this is the Dokuryuu. How in the hell am I seeing the Dokuryuu in a dream? What the fuck happened back in the hospital?! _Shinobu falls to his knees in shock, dropping his head in his hands as his head begins to spin. Images of his family flashing in his psyche, their smiling faces slowly fading away into the darkness of his mind, only to be replaced by another image. A giant dragon flying away from him into the sky, its' scales so bright they completely drowned out the light of the stars. The dragon that eclipses the night.

_The Megatreon..._

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" He lets out a hollow scream, the images in head just too much to bear. His nails digging so hard into his scalp, they actually draw blood. He imagines he would of stayed like that for hours, holding his head in anguish as he slowly lost his mind, but the feeling of a certain pressure made him snap his eyes open. There in front of him, was the Dokuryuu. Awake and upright, in all of it's glory. For a moment it just stands there, looking down at him. Then without warning, the mighty dragon threw his head into the air, letting out a roar that Shinobu was certain he would remember forever. With one strong flap of it's giant wings, the dragon took the air above him, up through the hole in the cave and out into the night sky.

Shinobu simply stood there in awe, watching as the Dokuryuu flew up into the glow of the moon.

* * *

"You know, they've been in there for a long time." Miyuki states, completely exasperated after having spent a good three hours staring at the door of a hospital. Whatever Shinobu and his friend discovered from that body must've been pretty interesting. She hears Shou sigh beside here.

"I know, something doesn't feel right. It shouldn't have taken this long to inspect a corpse, even if an undocumented monster is what killed the person. I wonder what's going on in there." He finishes with another sigh, drawing his attention back to the mindless doodles he's been drawing in his notebook to occupy himself.

"I sure hope nothing bad happened to them, trouble does seem to follow that man wherever he goes." She says, not able to come up with any other possible explanations for the overly long visit. Given Shinobu's reputation, anything could be happening inside that hospital.

"Too true, that man really was born under a cursed star." Shou replies with a shake of his head, his notepad abandoned and forgotten as his mind wandered to what might be happening inside the building.

* * *

Juro sat silent in the corner of the main infirmary, head tilted to the right to lean against his hand. His mouth was cast in a tight frown, his brow furrowed considerably. He'd been trying for that last hour to come up with some sort of cause for the incident he just witnessed, all of his thoughts ultimately leading to one conclusion.

_The Megatreon did more than just scar Shinobu. His ability to sense dragons, even exhibiting several of their traits. That thing royally screwed him up. Is he even human anymore?_ Juro turns his head at the sound of the door opening, his eyes coming in contact with the doctor slowly entering the room. One shes fully inside she shuts the door softly behind her and walks across the room to stand in front of Juro.

"Has anything happened since I last checked in?" She asks, still completely shaken up over the whole event. She had a feeling her night with the hunter's was only gonna get more complicated. She really hoped she was wrong.

"Nothing at all. He hasn't moved, he hasn't spoken, he hasn't even coughed. He's been asleep for almost three hours now, you don't think he's slipped into a coma do you?" He asks, hoping the answer is anything but yes.

"It's too early to tell. After what happened earlier, I'd say anything is possible at this point." She answers, causing Juro to growl in aggravation and stand up.

"This is bullshit, we find out the Dokuryuu is close-by and less than a minute later Shinobu is knocked out. We already wasted four hours in this damn hospital, we can't spare anymore. I'm waking him up!" He marches to Shinobu's bedside resolutely, leans over his partner's body and grabs his shoulder. He begins to shake him violently, screaming for him to 'wake the fuck up!' The doctor quickly moves behind him to try and pull him off of his sleeping friend, her attempts proving to be futile.

"Seriously Shinobu, if you don't wake up this instant I'm gonna leave your sorry ass and go hunt the Dokuryuu myself! Wasting out time sleeping, making me fucking wait for you! Get up you selfish son of a bi-ack!" His screaming is cut off by a hand wrapped tightly around his throat, making his eyes shut tightly from the pain in his neck. He opens his eyes to find Shinobu awake, sitting up and looking at him very angrily. He was relieved to find his eyes back to normal once again.

"Shut...the fuck...up..." Shinobu manages to choke out, roughly letting go of Juro's neck. He look down to find his suit and kote removed, His entire torso wrapped in white bandages. He starts to turn to the side so he can step off of the bed, Juro's hand grabbing his legs to keep him from moving. Shinobu simply flashes his partner a look promising indescribable pain if he didn't release him at once. Juro removed his hand immediately.

"What happened after I passed out?" Shinobu asks, now back on his feet and stretching out the stiffness from his joints. He turns around to face the others after not receiving an answer, finding a very aggravated Juro looking ready to explode.

"That's my line Shinobu! What in gods name were you dreaming about?!" Shinobu only narrowed hs eyes at his partner, turning to face away from him once again with sigh. Putting his removed armor back on his torso and arms, he gives Juro the simplest answer he could come up with.

"I saw the Dokuryuu." Those four words made Juro's jaw drop in shock, any other he planned on throwing at Shinobu immediately forgotten. Figuring we wouldn't be interrupted, Shinobu closed his eyes and took a deep breathe before continuing. "It would also appear that I, somehow, can sense where he is now." With the explanations aside and his armor back on his body, Shinobu thanked the doctor standing silent behind Juro. Telling her to send the bill to his barracks tomorrow, he opened the door to the infirmary and left his partner, who was currently caught up in his thoughts.

_It's exactly as I thought, Shinobu could only sense elemental dragons because that's all he's encountered so far. As soon as he came in close contact with that poison, something new awakened in him. Things are only going to get more crazy from here on out. _Quickly turning around to thank the short doctor, receiving only a curt nod in reply, Juro left to catch up with Shinobu.

_Are you even human anymore Shinobu...or are you closer to a dragon?_

* * *

A lot happened in this chapter, it was very fun to write :) R&R and yada yada yada.

Off to finish watching Black Rock Shooter.


	4. The Trail of Poison

Awhile since the last update, been mighty busy with other interests. This is an intermediate chapter, the next couple are going to be completely action based. Enjoy ;)

* * *

"So, let me get this straight." Juro starts, a vein visibly pulsing on his forehead as he followed his partner out of the hospital, back to their temporary barracks. "You want to go enter the Wasteland right now, after nightfall; the time when the majority of hunter deaths occur and find the Dokuryuu, an Elder dragon we know next to nothing about?"

"That's right." Shinobu replied, much too casually for Juro's liking. He was about tell his partner just how stupid that sounded when Shinobu continued. "I can still feel it in the Wasteland but it's starting to move, if we want to stay on its' trail we've got to go as soon as possible." They soon reached their barracks, Shinobu pushing the door open and hurrying to his room to change his armor and gather supplies. Juro pausing at the doorway for a moment, growling under his breath. He enters the barracks and stands outside shinobu's room, hoping to snap some sense into him.

"Allow me to remind you, you were just unconscious in a hospital bed from coming in contact with the Dokuryuu's poison, and you want to go chase it down! How do you know the same thing won't happen again?! How do you know the miasma won't just render you completely useless, waiting to die?! Don't be a fool for once in your life and listen to reason!" The room was silent for several moments after that, Juro quickly becoming beyond irritated at his partner's flippant attitude. He was about to forcefully enter Shinobu's room when his partner finally emerged, donned in his Chameleos armor. The armor was much slimmer than the usual build, made custom for Shinobu.

"Juro, I don't know what will happen, nor do I care. We're going, deal with it." He brushes by Juro, quickly making his way into the kitchen. He sets his pouch down on the table, taking a seat to double-check his supplies. "Go put on your Yian Garuga armor and get prepared, we depart in ten minutes." Satisfied with the pouch's contents, he closes it and fastens it to his waist. Then he pulls his Dual Swords off of his back and begins to sharpen them with the whetstone on the table. He looks up slightly to see Juro shaking his head. "_I'm_ leaving in ten minutes, with or without you."

"There's nothing I can say to change your mind is there?" Juro turns around and enters the open door to his room, Shinobu left alone once again.

_There never is, Juro. There never is._

* * *

"You heard that, right?" Miyuki asks her partner, both standing in an alley near Shinobu's barracks. She had no real doubt that Shou heard what the hunter said, his senses being as astute as they are. She really just wanted confirmation, she found it hard to believe that the two hunters already discovered the Dokuryuu's whereabouts.

"Loud and clear, this is going to be a long night." He turns away from the barracks and begins walking down the street, back towards their lodge. He hears Miyuki sigh lightly as she follows him.

"Guess I've gotta suit up." She clearly wasn't happy about that fact.

"Yes, they're gonna need backup if something goes wrong." He was kind of excited at the possibility of seeing her hunting again. It's been months since she's had the need to.

_This is going to be a very long night._ They both thought simultaneously.

* * *

Juro exited his room shortly after, now wearing his Garuga armor. His Black Long Sword now sheathed on his back, ready for battle. The scent of smoke is in the air as he enters the kitchen, not surprised by the sight of Shinobu smoking a cigarette.

"Before you say anything, I'm simply calming my nerves." Shinobu says after a moderate pull on the cigarette, the white smoke pooling around him as he slowly exhales from his nose. Juro simply shook his head.

"Pfft, that's bullshit and you know it. As long as we've been traveling together I've never once seen you look even slightly anxious." He says with humor in his voice and walks over to the kitchen table to grab the pack of cigarettes. He takes out one and sticks it behind his ear to smoke later. "Deny it all you want, but that beast inside of you is starting to stir. I can see it in your eyes." He finishes, then grabs his pack off of the table and fastens it to his belt as he starts walking to the door.

"Hmph, I couldn't hide it if I tried." Shinobu takes one last drag and stubs the cigarette out on the table, he doubts they'll be returning to these barracks any time soon. He stands up and meets his partner at the front door. Both turning toward one another, they both give a sharp nod and head out for what could possibly be their final hunt.

* * *

"Are you almost ready to go Mikyuki?" Shou calls to his companion, surprised at how long it's taking her to suit up. _May be getting a little sentimental, she so rarely goes participates in any hunts these days._ "If you're nervous it's alright, I doubt those two will actually requ-" He gets cut off by her bedroom door opening, the sight of Miyuki donned in her Silver Sol armor bringing a pronounced smirk to his face.

"I see, as always, you choose against wearing any head armor." Miyuki only rolls her eyes at this, walking past her partner silently to the other side of the room. There on the short table, right in front of the couch, sat an object she's missed immensely these last few months. Her Cleaving Thunder Switch Axe. Her eyes softening as she begins to run her fingers over the weapon, memories flooding her mind. _I can't believe I've went so long without using it. _Wrapping her hand around the Axe's hilt, she lifts it from the table and flips it onto her back. She lets out a content sigh at feeling the familiar weight on her back once again.

"Are you ready, Monarch Miyuki?" At hearing her old title, she turned to face her partner with a small smile.

"You know that's not me anymore Shou." She replies with a shake of her head. "Right now, I'm just a hunter walking down the trail of poison." They share a laugh and walk to the door to enter an uncertain night, and begin tailing Shinobu.

* * *

Yep, Miyuki's a pretty famous hunter. And as fate would have it, she uses one of my favourite Axe's.

Cleaving Thunder is Jinouga's SA from P3rd, the name may vary depending on the source but I like this name.

Chameleos armor tends to be very bulky, which wouldn't work out for a Dual Sword user. Imagine the regular Chameleos armor but much slimmer and light-weight.

Juro's Garuga armor is exactly how it looks in-game, always loved Garuga armor xD

R&R and blah blah blah...


	5. Not Everyone Makes It Out Alive

Thanks to the 2 people who have reviewed this little project of mine, I'm feeling inspired enough to bust out another chapter. I'd like to thank **Kalfu** especially, for his/her very generous review. 2 people may not seem like a lot, but it's 2 more than I expected to get for this story. Since I don't tend to dabble in character driven stories, any recognition is greatly appreciated :)

I'm gonna be re-editing the chapters soon, as they're riddled with grammatical errors and plot inconsistencies...

Anyway, on to the hunting! I sense another cold open is about to occur ;)

* * *

"So, any last words Shinobu?" Juro, as per the usual, felt the incessant need to over-dramatize the situation and turn it into the last act of some shitty story.

_He probably thinks he's profound in these moments, really he's just thinking too damn much...but if it makes this walk shorter, I can't really complain. _Pinching the bridge of his nose and letting out a heavy sigh that sounded extremely familiar, Shinobu decided to indulge his partner's cliche musings just this once.

"Juro, last words are for people who have time to talk while they're laying, comfortable in their deathbeds. Guys like you and me, we aren't going to be defined by our parting words. We are going to be defined by the moments that precede our long-overdue demise." He shuts his eyes tightly and takes a deep breath, clearing his mind to feel out the Dokuryuu's current location. He gets a good grasp of the spot and opens his eyes, turning towards his partner to find him contemplating his words.

"Don't lump me in with you, my death is anything but overdue. I'm not the one who's narrowly escaped death countless times." Juro retorts with a light chuckle, turning his head towards his partner to find him staring up at the stars.

"There's no such thing as escaping death, either you die or you don't. I should know, I've already died once." This wasn't exactly Shonobu's ideal topic of discussion, but the Wasteland certainly was the perfect setting for such a morose conversation. The piles of dry bone, both Hunter and Wyvern, only accentuating that point.

"Oh come off it Shinobu, you know damn well there's no coming back from death. And here you are, alive and well." It was moments like these that made Juro regret bringing up subjects like this, it always seemed to stir up some unpleasant memories for his partner.

"Sure, I'm here...but the person who I was, the person who I was _meant_ to be? He's long gone. Now..." Shinobu wasn't sure why he always found himself staring at the night sky, at the stars. _Maybe I'm waiting to see that same sight once again. The light so vast that it makes the stars simply disappear._ "-Now I'm just watching a dream. A dream I can't control or understand."

"Well, assuming that's true and life really is just a dream, then what is death?" This made Shinobu turn away from the sky and look into the curious eyes of his partner. _Okay, maybe Juro can be somewhat profound at times._

"Heh, death is just waking up from a dream." The topic was dropped after that, neither feeling the need to elaborate on that simple comment.

_Maybe it's finally time to wake up._

* * *

_Well these two seem to be taking their sweet ass time, you'd think they'd be in more of a hurry to catch up to the Dokuryuu._ Miyuki and Shou had split up as soon as they reached the Wasteland, she continued to tail the two hunters while Shou went to a safe place to observe the night's events. They agreed to rendezvous later on, both hoping for no surprises tonight. _But knowing Shinobu, those hopes are going to be in vain._

She didn't know if it was because of the situation, or because of the full moon, but the stars looked exceptionally beautiful tonight. They illuminated some unique hue in their glow tonight, the faintest shade of purple she's ever seen. It's a highly unusual sight, so abnormal it almost didn't register in her mind.

"Juro, it's moving! It's headed in our direction!" That on the other hand. she had no problem registering.

* * *

"What?! Are you certain?" Juro looked all around him for the sight of the incoming Dragon but found nothing but the black of night. "I can't see it yet, can you give me the exact direction?" Placing his right hand on the hilt of his Long Sword, he takes his other hand and opens his pouch to remove a Might Pill. He looks to his right to find Shinobu doing exactly the same.

"It's flying in from the east, approximately 2 miles away and closing in very fast." At that they both pop their pills into their mouths and swallow, feeling the capsules take effect immediately. "These pills will last for 10 minutes tops, we have to go all out and finish this as soon as possible." Shinobu shuts his eyes and focuses all of his energy, just like he's done a thousand times before. He opens them and once again, Juro is presented with the blood-red gaze of the legendary Dragon Slayer.

"Well well, now it's a party." Shinobu lets out a dark chuckle at this and takes his Dual Swords off of his back. He looks over at his partner and utters 2 simple words.

"Let's rock." And just like that, they take off in a flash of red towards the now visible Dokuryuu, making a quick descent towards the charging hunters.

* * *

"Those two are fucking insane!" Shou could not believe his eyes. "Those two are charging in head-on to engage an unknown monster without a single care! And Miuyki, what the fuck is she doing?!"

Standing about 50 yards behind Shinobu and Juro was Miyuki, completely dumbstruck by the scene unfolding in front of her very eyes. _What...the fuck. To think that Shinobu's friend is just as insane as he is! _She didn't know whether to be impressed or scared at this point.

* * *

"Shinobu, it's starting to slow down and lower it's altitude! Split up!" Without saying a word, the two crossed paths. Shinobu running left and Juro running right, hurrying to meet the dragon when it flew low enough to the land to reach.

"Juro remember, it's claws are poisonous! His wings and tail may be as well, avoid them at all costs!" They were close enough to hear the sound of the Dokuryuu's wings as the dragon slowed to a stop above them. They watched as it reared its' head back and let out a piercing roar, which was undoubtedly heard from many miles away. The roar came to a stop and the dragon's head dropped back down, then turned to stare in Shinobu's direction. With one flap of its' wings it turned its' body towards him and with the next flap, started a nose-dive towards the hunter that was almost too fast to follow.

Shinobu immediately quickened his speed before crouching low to the ground and focusing all of his momentum to jump into the air and meet the dragon mid-dive, Juro running as fast as possible to attack the monster from behind while it focused on Shinobu. _The next second will determine the entire fight, if we can get the advantage here we can kill this thing._

* * *

Time seemed to stop as Miyuki watched Shinobu and the Dokuryuu become closer and closer to clashing. And when the two seemingly unstoppable forces finally collided, she finally understood why they called Shinobu the Dragon Slayer.

* * *

Using his arms to pivot his body and begin a spinning motion, Shinobu managed to narrowly miss the Dragon's head and inflict a deep cut to its' left wings, he himself coming out the other side unscathed. The Dokuryuu landed hard on the land beneath him, forming a monstrous crater and sending a very powerful shockwave from the impact. Shinobu landed back on the ground as the quaking subsided and turned around to find Juro not wasting any time and charging in towards the grounded dragon's back.

As he closed in, he snapped his Long Sword from its' sheathe, twirling the blade around his hand twice to increase the strike's cutting power and drove it right into the dragon's hind leg. The Dokuryuu let out a pained roar and sent a powerful swipe of his tail at Juro, the hunter flipping into the air to avoid the attack. He began spinning his body to send a powerful strike to the monster's back when Dokuryuu quickly twisted its' upper-body, hitting Juro hard with its' undamaged wing and sending him flying back a good 30 feet.

"UGH!" His body rolled 5 times before he was able to re-balance himself and slide to a stop. _This thing is fast despite its' size, going at it one-after-another isn't going to get us anywhere. _He lifted his head up and saw Shinobu charging the dragon again, Juro quickly broke out into a run to meet his partner. They watched the Dokuryuu stand up on its' hind legs and roar once again, but this time the roar was different. The dragon's miasma began to pour out of its' mouth, the cloud becoming more dense as its' roar increased in volume.

Juro instantly turned sharply to the left to avoid the noxious gas, Shinobu however didn't deter, he simply increased his pace before jumping into the air towards the dragon's back. With a powerful swing of his arms, Shinobu performed a quick succession of windmill strikes on the monsters back. 5 deep gashes appeared as he landed. Wasting no time, Juro sent another powerful strike at the dragon's weak leg, hoping to trip it. The Dokuryuu only faltered slightly before batting both of the hunter's away wih a quick swipe of its' tail.

Juro and Shinobu skidded to a stop next to each other. Juro was visibly unscathed but Shinobu had a deep gash on his left forearm, having had raised his arms to block the spikes on the monster's tail.

"Shinobu, you alright?!" This was very bad, for all Juro knew his partner wasn't getting back up. He didn't seem to be hurt too bad but he never new what was happening inside Shinobu's mind. His partner's clenched eyes only making him more nervous.

"Yeah, it's just a scratch. I'm fine." Both hunters quickly got back on their feet, Shinobu opened his eyes as the slight sting in his arm subsided. His left eyebrow slanted upward as Juro's eyes grew to the size of saucers. "What you staring at?"

"You-you're eyes...they're purple again..." This greatly confused Shinobu.

"What do you mean again?" He looked at his partner like he was crazy.

"It happened at the hospital too, the Dokuryuu's miasma is affecting you in some way. Try not to get exposed to it anymore." Juro was preparing to charge the dragon once again when an unknown figure suddenly appeared above the Dokuryuu and hit the monster hard in the head.

Shinobu and Juro both had the exact same thought, _what the fuck was that?_

* * *

"Those two are managing to inflict some decent damage but they're slowly losing their advantage." Miyuki had been patiently biding her time, waiting for the opportune moment to jump into the fray. The Dokuryuu sending Juro and Shinobu both hurtling to the ground together seemed like that moment. She breaks immediately into a swift sprint, hoping to catch the Dokuryuu off guard. As she approached the unsuspecting Dragon she reached to her back and grabbed the hilt of her Switch Axe. Whipping it from her back, she felt the weapon slide and lock into place as it finished morphing into Axe mode.

Using the Axe's strong swinging momentum to her advantage, she flipped into the air above the Dokuryuu's head. The weapon's weight bringing the Axe head down in a devastating overhead smash. The force of the impact sent the Dokuryuu's entire upper-body down to the ground, completely obliterating its' right horn in the process.

Miyuki lands her flip on the Dokuryuu's back, kicking off of it to land behind the stunned Dragon. She slowly stood up from her crouching position, standing her Axe horizontally in front of her as she did. She stood like that for several moments, the boys completely speechless in front of her. Finally her head raises, a pronounced smirk shows on her face as she amusedly addresses them.

"Need some help, boys?" Juro remained staring at her with a stupid look on his face, but her voice seemed to have snapped Shinobu out of his reverie.

"Whoa." He very eloquently said, guess he hadn't snapped out of it either.

"Whoa indeed." Miyuki simply laughed and flicked the switch on her Axe to turn it into Axe mode. She turned towards the Dokuryuu as it started to recover from the attack.

Shinobu didn't know what to think about what he just witnessed.

_This dream just got a lot more interesting._

* * *

Whoo, I think that's my longest chapter yet [I checked, it's not lmao]. Soooo many line breaks smh.

3 hours straight spent writing this, listening to Nujabes xD

A lot happened in this chapter. I think Miyuki's entrance may be the greatest think I've ever written lol.

R&R and all that jazz.


End file.
